1. Field of the Present Invention
The present invention generally relates to the field of data processing; and more particularly to a system and method for electronically archiving and retrieving archived data between a central data processing facility and an associated data archival facility.
2. History of Related Art
In the field of data processing, the demand for the timely and efficient archival of data and retrieval of archived data continues to grow. For example, in the oil and gas industry, the need exists to remotely archive and retrieve large amounts of data. Operating companies that own and/or manage hydrocarbon wells generally evaluate the wells by a process known as wireline logging. In wireline logging, one or more tools are connected to a power and data transmission cable or “wireline” and are lowered into the well borehole to obtain measurements of geophysical properties for the area surrounding the borehole. The wireline supports the tools as they are lowered into the borehole, supplies power to the tools, and provides a communication medium to send signals to the tools and receive data from the tools. Tools are typically lowered to a depth of interest in the well and are then retrieved. During the process, the tools typically collect and send data about the geological formations through which they pass through the wireline to the data acquisition and processing system at the surface.
The data acquisition and processing system compiles the data from the tools into a “log” (a plot which presents the geophysical information concerning the geological formations encountered by the well). Logs may be used to evaluate current production from producing wells or to inspect the integrity of production equipment in a producing well. In any case, the data gathered during the logging operation is generally presented on the log by depth, but may also be presented by time, or any other index by which multiple physical entries are recorded. The data acquisition and processing system may send the acquired log data to a viewing monitor, where the well logging professional conducting the logging operation can view the log data as it is being compiled.
The acquired log data is often crucial to the decision-making process with respect to operations (both ongoing and future) at the well. For example, regarding a well that has just been drilled and logged, the well could (depending on the log data) be drilled deeper, plugged and abandoned as non-productive, or cased and tested—or perhaps the decision will be that additional logs are required before the decision on the disposition of the well can be made. The operating company which is drilling or producing the well frequently desires to have its own personnel review the log data. The operating company, however, may be located half a world away from the well itself. Drilling and production activities are often located in remote locations and it is difficult (from both an expense and risk view) for the operating company to have its own personnel, such as a geologist or a petrophycist, on site during the logging operation. Often times, analysis of current log data requires the prompt retrieval and analysis of previously logged data. Thus, the acquired log data is typically transmitted to the operating company's headquarters or some other central repository for further interpretation and review.
Each operating company may have unique views about and preferences for what is needed. Some operating companies may focus only on current data and others may have a need to also review historical data. The rapid advances in electronic communications and web-based central data processing facilities permit clients to demand ever faster and reliable data management. Further, as the complexity of data evaluation tools increases, post acquisition interpretation and processing of data becomes an integral part of the data delivery system. The exploration and production industry is no exception to this trend. It not only desires time-efficient data acquisition, but also desires efficient management of the data once acquired, including the efficient archival and retrieval of transmitted data. To assist them, the operating companies may have one or more service partners to provide technology, processes, and services that bring increased operating efficiency at reduced costs. Generally, the services provided by these partners include the processing, management, and delivery of log data.
The service partners providing the processing, management, and delivery services typically employ one or more central data processing facilities each of which is connected to one or more data archival facilities. Generally, the archival and retrieval of data between the various facilities is conducted in an inefficient manner; with any errors in the archival and retrieval process requiring significant manual intervention to not only correct the failure, but to determine the origin of the failure as well.
Accordingly, it would be beneficial to implement a system and method for the efficient archival and retrieval of data between a central data processing facility and the data archival facilities utilized by such central data processing facility.
One aspect of the invention relates to data archival systems for implementing an archival process on a plurality of data files. A data archival system in accordance with one embodiment of the invention includes: a central processing hub configured to receive the plurality of data files; a data archival facility connected to the central processing hub and configured to archive the plurality of data files; and an archival manager configured to cause a) transmission of at least one of the plurality of data files from the central processing hub to the data archival facility in response to an archive request; b) archival of at least one of the plurality of data files transmitted to the data archival facility in response to an archive request; c) retrieval of at least one of the plurality of data files previously archived in response to a retrieval request; and d) transmission of at least one of the retrieved data files from the data archival facility to the central processing hub.
Another aspect of the invention relates to methods for archiving a plurality of data files between a central data processing facility and a data archival facility. A method in accordance with one embodiment of the invention includes: a) responsive to receiving an archive session request, validating the plurality of data files associated with the archive session request; b) responsive to a successful validation of the archive session request, transmitting the validated data files from the central data processing facility to the data archival facility; c) responsive to receiving the validated data files at the data archival facility, validating the received data files for archival; and d) responsive to a successful validation of the received data files, archiving the received data files.
Another aspect of the invention relates to computer-readable media having programs that implement methods of the invention. A computer-readable medium in accordance with one embodiment of the invention has a program having machine-readable instructions for causing a processor to perform a method for archiving a plurality of data files between a central data processing facility and a data archival facility, the method comprising: a) responsive to receiving an archive session request, validating the plurality of data files associated with the archive session request; b) responsive to a successful validation of the archive session request, transmitting the validated data files from the central data processing facility to the data archival facility; c) responsive to receiving the validated data files at the data archival facility, validating the received data files for archival; and d) responsive to a successful validation of the received data files, archiving the received data files.
Other aspects and advantages of the invention will be come apparent from the following description and the attached claims.
While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way of example in the drawings and will herein be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the drawings and detailed description presented herein are not intended to limit the invention to the particular embodiment disclosed, but on the contrary, the invention is limited only by the language of the appended claims.